Raincoast Books
Available: 07/19/05
5 1/4 x 8 · 288 pages
978-1-55192-783-1
CDN $21.95 · pb

Canadian Title

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The Sweet Edge

Alison Pick

The Sweet Edge is award-winning poet Alison Pick’s first novel, about a young couple who lead separate lives one summer. While Ellen works through the muggy days in a trendy Toronto art gallery, her boyfriend Adam takes a solo canoe trip into the Arctic. Pick ingeniously structures the novel so that the two characters alternate chapters and points of view. First we’re inside the young woman’s head, in the sweltering city and its vividly drawn art-world enclave, then inside the young man’s head as he goes dangerously deep into the wilderness. We watch Ellen and Adam’s impressions of their partnership, and the world around them, gradually change until the end of the book, when their worlds—and altered world views—suddenly collide.

The Sweet Edge was a Globe and Mail Top 100 Book.

“Alison Pick’s first novel, The Sweet Edge, is gorgeous. It’s also strange and funny and terribly sexy. It’s poetic without being turgid, topical without being trite, and peppered with lively pop-cultural touchstones you never trip over ... You will root for and be riveted by the unique, colloquial, authentic way Ellen and Adam find their way back to forgiveness.” (The Globe and Mail)

“Pick, a skilled poet who won 2002’s Bronwen Wallace Award for best unpublished writer under 35, uses language cleanly with metaphors that shine. Buoyed by the grace of Pick’s prose, The Sweet Edge is a wholly enjoyable read that rings (sometimes uncomfortably) true.” (NOW Magazine)

“Writing with a delightful sense of urgency that is indeed sweet.” (Vancouver Sun)

“Written beautifully.” (Calgary Herald)

“As first novels go, this is an accomplished one. Pick should be recognized for her ability to navigate the subject matter of romantic relationships without succumbing to the easy answer. There is wisdom about relationships in The Sweet Edge.” (Montreal Gazette)

“Poised, polished and often deliciously described ... Pick’s smart, sexy novel is about the inevitability of change and how the young deal with it in an unreliable world. It’s an impressive debut and should bring added praise to a poet who has already earned recognition across the country.” (London Free Press)

“Poetic and insightful.” (Atlantic Books Today)

“The Sweet Edge is a book that would probably appeal to almost anybody ... (It is) both male and female, both urban and wild, and while it’s characters are young, Pick’s style of writing ... is mature, complex and ultimately refreshing.” (DOSE)

“Extremely deft writing, the use of beautiful yet always appropriate poetic language, vividly descriptive narrative, and a deep understand of the central characters combine to create a moving and powerful story.” (Quill & Quire)

“From its sensual title to its satisfying conclusion, The Sweet Edge is a novel of indelible, vivid juxtapositions. The drama of the interlinked stories is artfully matched with their connecting themes of endurance and survival. And (Pick’s) writing is ... breathtaking. It has dash and snap; it is seductive and to be savoured. And this is her first book! She’s very talented.” (The Current (St. John’s))

“Pick gives you an inside look ... at forgiveness.” (Chatelaine)

“A painfully tender novel ... These characters are rich, real, and a striking reminder of our own humanity. The Sweet Edge is brimming with detail, from the stark and breathtaking landscape of the northern wilderness to the quirky, personal details that make the characters human. Pick pays attention to everything large and small, making this a novel that flows with colour and emotion.” (GKFA.com)

“Beautifully written, The Sweet Edge is a literary find.” (Owen Sound Sun-Times)

Alison Pick is the 2002 Bronwen Wallace Award winner for most promising unpublished writer under 35 in Canada. Her first book of poetry, Question & Answer, was shortlisted for the Gerald Lampert Award. Her poetry and prose have won or been shortlisted for numerous literary awards and have appeared in publications across Canada. In 2006, Pick’s The Mind’s Eye won the CBC Literary Award for Poetry. Originally from Kitchener, Ontario, the author now divides her time between Ontario and Newfoundland. www.alisonpick.com